September 9, 2002 - It should come as no surprise that people have been using September 11th as a reason to ask Congress for everything from a bailout for the airlines to the return of the tax-deductible three-martini lunch. But as Christy George reports from Oregon Public Broadcasting, opponents of the environmental movement have invoked 911 more often than most this past year:
September 10, 2002 - People around the state will commemorate the anniversary of the September 11th attacks tomorrow Helms reports.
September 11, 2002 -
September 11, 2002 - This morning at 7:46 central time, bells rang at the Minnesota State Capitol to mark the one year anniversary of the moment the first plane struck the north tower of the World Trade Center. The bell ringing was part of an event attended by several hundred people which featured remarks by Governor and Mrs. Ventura. Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum was at the event and she joins us now from the Capitol. At Memorial Park in Moorhead, people gathered this morning to hear the reading of the names of all the people killed in the September 11 attacks. Bob Reha was there, and he's on the line now. Later today, Minnesota's law enforcement organizations are holding an event at the metrodome called "Remember the Heros." Speakers will address the crowd before the Twins game, which begins at 12:05. Minnesota Public Radio's William Wilcoxen is at the Dome right now.
September 12, 2002 - The Minnesota Commerce Department says state regulators have sufficient tools to protect Xcel Energy's Minnesota ratepayers from the company's financially troubled NRG Energy subsidiary. The advisory comments go to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission, which is looking into the effect of NRG on ratepayers. The comments come a day before Xcel has to find more than a billion dollars in collateral for NRG. Company officials say they won't be able to raise the money by then and expect to ask lenders for an extension. Minnesota Public Radio's Bill Catlin reports.
September 13, 2002 - Republican gubernatorial candidate Tim Pawlenty says he's running for the job he's always wanted. But Pawlenty's road to the governor's race has taken a few twists and turns. The House Majority Leader dropped out of the race four years ago and considered running for the U.S. Senate this year, before a call from Vice President Dick Cheney changed his mind. During his ten years in the Legislature, Pawlenty has developed a reputation as an able leader and a quick wit, but critics say he moved to the right to get his party's support this year. In the latest in our series of gubernatorial candidate profiles, Minnesota Public Radio's Laura McCallum has this look at Tim Pawlenty...
September 15, 2002 - On this American RadioWorks special radio report, “Nature's Revenge - Louisiana's Vanishing Wetlands” looks at a region of the United States that is crumbling and sinking into the sea. Scientists say it's causing one of the worst and least-publicized environmental disasters in America's history. As Daniel Zwerdling reports for NPR News and ARW, there's a moral to this story: when humans try to outwit nature, it can strike back with a vengeance.
September 16, 2002 - Northwest Airlines has yet to emerge from the perilous downturn in the travel industry, though the airline is performing better than most of its peers. Flights are filling up, but Northwest is flying fewer planes, and making less money off their once all important business travelers. Now analysts say the Eagan-based airline may soon ask its employees to help it avoid sinking any further. But the airline's unions say they don't trust Northwest's management, and they will resist giving back what they call hard-won wages and benefits. Minnesota Public Radio's Andrew Haeg reports.
September 17, 2002 - (NOTE: HOST OUTCUE) The governor's race is locked in a virtual three-way tie between DFLer Roger Moe, Republican Tim Pawlenty, and Independence Party candidate Tim Penny. A new poll from Minnesota Public Radio and the St. Paul Pioneer Press shows the three clumped tightly together as the campaigns head into the final two months of the election. Green Party candidate Ken Pentel trailed a distant fourth -- and is in danger of losing major party status for the Greens. Minnesota Public Radio's Michael Khoo has more.
September 17, 2002 - The walleye were biting on Lake Mille Lacs this year like no time anyone can remember. Record numbers of anglers headed to the big lake to get in on the action. The result was serious overfishing. Indian conservation officials say the Department of Natural Resources let non-tribal anglers take too many fish. Officials with the Mille Lacs Band of Ojibwe and Fond du Lac Band of Chippewa wanted the DNR to stop the fishing on Mille Lacs. The DNR and the bands have been negotiating for months. But now they say talking things out has failed. Mainstreet Radio's Jeff Horwich reports the bands and the DNR are headed for mediation.